Working with a Wedding Photographer
1
Step away from the mile long Pinterest board of wedding photo pose ideas. You know you have one! Do not, we repeat DO NOT try dictating every pose to your photographer. They don’t need it and if you don’t have 100% confidence that they will compose great photos - you booked the wrong photographer, and that’s on you!
You will get the best results if you let your photographer do what they do best - after all, they’ve done this more than you have! But if there are any must have poses you really want, communicate that with your photographer ahead of time but keep it reasonable1
2
Your photographer doesn’t need your maid-of-honor or your grandma hovering around micromanaging them, posing people or telling them what photos to take.
Now if they want to be on standby to hold your bouquet, wrangle family for photos, carry the camera bag, fluff your dress or hold your beer - your photographer would surely appreciate the extra hands but most have an assistant to help with that. Otherwise, it’s best that everyone stays out of the way and lets them do their job!
3
If your photography package includes a complimentary Engagement Session don’t expect a discount on the package, more hours on wedding day or a substitution of other services if you don’t want an engagement session! The obvious is in the word complimentary, meaning it’s just a package perk you aren’t being charged extra for. It’s a take it or leave it thing.
While some photographers may actually be willing to compensate with extra hours (which we love) or alternative services - that’s not common and shouldn’t be expected.
4
“Can we have the RAW images from our day?”. That is going to be a hard NO! But you can expect a thoughtfully selected final product, because that is what you paid for. Asking for RAW images is like going to a restaurant where the chef is well known for a specialty dish, but when the waiter takes your order, you ask for your meal to be brought to you uncooked! The RAW images are your photographers ingredients - it’s their secret sauce - so don’t ask!
FUN FACT: By Federal Law, your photographer owns your wedding photos? You are simply granted the rights to reproduce, publish and use them in limited fashion.
5
Not every photographer is a wedding photographer! It is a skill that takes years of work and training. And frankly, your planner (and your other vendors) will secretly have a meltdown if you tell them your cousin Steve has a camera and is going to be your wedding photographer.
Having a camera doesn’t equate to knowing how to shoot a wedding. There is not enough room to explain all the reasons why - so please just book a real wedding photographer! You can thank us later!
6
You photographer is not going to photoshop all of your images to give you some trunk junk or cover up that third eye that popped up on your forehead this morning. Not unless you are prepared to come out of pocket with some significant cash for them to spend the countless hours that would require.
Skilled photographers will compose photos and shoot from angles that will be the most flattering to you but they can’t change genetics or mother nature.
7
If you don’t see consistency in the images that a photographer shows on their website or social media, that should send up red flags. The photographers style should be clear and evident. Sadly, we have seen many final galleries that are inconsistent with the image styles that some photographer posts for marketing purposes.
It’s ok to ask your potential photographer to let you see a full gallery and we have seen many include links to a couple of galleries in their initial communication with you.
8
Wedding photographers are not cheap...get used to it!! Photographers invest thousands and frankly this post isn’t long enough to list all of their costs or express how little they actually profit from a wedding day!
So we’ll say it loudly for the ones in the back -
Your wedding day photos are the ONLY tangible item you will have to remember your wedding day...forever.
Sure, there are many cheaper photographers out there but they are likely cheaper for a number of reasons - any of which could leave you feeling the worse kind of buyers remorse - for a day you can’t just “do over”!